


Family for Beginners

by hostclubmanager17



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Adoption, Husbands, M/M, no descriptive sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-02-26 17:07:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21771820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hostclubmanager17/pseuds/hostclubmanager17
Summary: The Tsukishima couple is about to become the Tsukishima family
Relationships: Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 7
Kudos: 225





	1. Chapter 1

Awareness came to Kei slowly, as it did every morning he didn’t set an alarm.

He didn’t bother opening his eyes just yet, the dark room helping to keep Kei on that blissful edge of sleep and wakefulness. Stretching his legs out, Kei suddenly noticed that his left foot was cold. After wiggling his toes, he concludes that the covers had been pulled off to his right during the night. He’s not surprised. Almost every morning Kei woke up to find all of the blankets tugged over to Tadashi’s side of the bed, most of them hanging off the side, not even being used.

But Kei couldn’t find it in him to be annoyed, his sleep addled mind allowing a fond smile to cross over his face. Lifting his arms up for a brief stretch, Kei tugged half of the covers back onto his side of the bed before rolling onto his stomach. Smile now pressed into the pillow, Kei slung an arm over Tadashi’s back, more than prepared to lapse back into a few more minutes of sleep.

Except, Tadashi isn’t there.

For a few seconds, Kei blindly swept his left arm over Tadashi’s usual resting spot, smile now downturning into a pout. The sheets are cold, and when his fingers finally curl fruitlessly over the edge of the bed, Kei blearily opened his eyes into a squint. He glared at the empty sheets, brain slowly beginning to function at a more normal capacity.

Just as Kei withdrew his arm and propped his upper body up on his elbows, he heard the toilet in the adjacent bathroom flush. By the time the sink faucet had been turned on and off, Kei had found his glasses and placed them on his face. His vision cleared abruptly just as his husband of two years walked out of the bathroom, clad only in a pair of black underwear and looking far too bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for having just woken up. Kei glared at him from the bed, but Tadashi just grinned brightly.

“Good morning, Tsukki!”

“Get your ass back in bed.” Kei forced his pout to remain, even as his husband giggled merrily and did as he was told, tugging Kei down onto his back for snuggles. Kei quickly wrapped Tadashi up in his arms, pressing a kiss to his forehead before asking in a much kinder tone, “How did  _ you _ manage to wake up before me?”

“Hmm… luck?” Tadashi nuzzled his face against Kei’s neck, happily soaking up all the warmth he had lost while in the bathroom. “Actually, I think I was just too excited to sleep.”

“Oh?” Kei’s voice was gradually tilting back towards sleepy, his legs tangling themselves between Tadashi’s. He gave a deep, pleased hum before a grunt is forced out of him, Tadashi pulling himself out of Kei’s hold to stare down at him. “What?”

“Don’t tell me you forgot! Today’s the meet-and-greet, Tsukki! We’re going to meet our  _ child _ today!”

Kei blinked up at his husband a few times, and Tadashi watched in silence as a looming excitement slowly flooded Kei’s eyes and face. All at once, Kei bolted upright, matching Tadashi’s pose.

“That’s… that’s today.”

It’s a statement, not a question, but Tadashi squealed out a ‘yes’ anyways before collapsing back onto the bed, squirming around in glee. Today was the day they would finally find a child who would be the perfect final piece to the Tsukishima-family puzzle. They had been waiting for this day for over a month now, and if Tadashi weren’t so excited he might have been upset at Kei’s forgetfulness.

But Kei, at least, was making up for his mistake by leaning over Tadashi and peppering his face with kisses. Tadashi gladly accepted the affection, winding his arms around his husband’s shoulders to keep him in place. This seemed to agree with Kei because Tadashi felt his husband smile against his cheek before ducking his head into Tadashi’s neck to unleash another wave of kisses.

Tadashi hummed with delight, smiling up at the ceiling. Even after ten years of being together, he never got enough of Kei’s affectionate side. After spending his childhood and most of his teenage years watching Kei interact so harshly with the rest of the world, it always felt like an achievement of Tadashi’s to be able to pull this soft, lovey-dovey side of Kei out into the open.

“You know, we do have a few hours before the meeting.” Tadashi pecked his husband on the cheek, fingers nonchalantly winding around Kei’s blond curls. “So…”

There’s a brief puff of warm air against Tadashi’s neck before Kei pulled back to display the warm smile he was wearing. Tadashi returned the smile, stretching up to kiss the tip of Kei’s nose before his husband dove in, pulling the blankets with him.

* A few hours later *

Tadashi was so excited he was worried he might vibrate out of his shoes. Kei kept him grounded as best as he could, squeezing his hand every time Tadashi started adding skips into his walk. He might only admit it to Tadashi or under pain of death, but sometimes Kei found his husband too cute to stand. And now they were adding a child for Tadashi to cuddle and adore and make adorable photos with?

Kei hoped his heart wouldn’t pop under the pressure.

After a short train ride and a quick walk, the two men finally arrived at their destination. Tadashi pressed his lips together tightly, a strained whine escaping before he abruptly picked up the pace, all but dragging his husband along. Slowing down right as they reached the front doors, Kei felt Tadashi weave their fingers together snuggly before walking inside. Kei didn’t know if the increase in touch was because Tadashi was nervous or if he knew how nervous Kei was, but he wasn’t about to complain either way.

The first thing Kei noticed when they walked in was the small rainbow flag hanging on the wall behind the desk among the various pictures of children and their happy families. Even though technically he and Tadashi now had the legal right to adopt, it still helped to ease Kei’s nerves knowing they weren’t going to receive any extra hassle from this particular group home.

Tadashi, on the other hand, first noticed the tiny bell waiting on the otherwise empty desk. Licking his lips and trying to ignore the rising anxiety in his chest, he led Kei across the lobby and gave the bell a little tap, unconsciously tightening his grip on Kei’s hand as he did so. Kei barely had the time to press a reassuring kiss to his husband’s temple before a lady walked out from the doorway just behind the desk. Tadashi’s cheeks bloomed a dark red, but all the woman did was smile as the three exchanged bows.

“Welcome. My name is Otonari Chiyo, I am the patron here. Are you the Tsukishima’s?”

Tadashi, still embarrassed by the smooch, merely nodded his head while Kei responded, “Yes. We scheduled a first-time appointment for 1 pm today?”

Just then, Tadashi noticed the clock on the wall reading 12:55 and gave another quick bow to Ms. Otonari. “Sorry for being early, we were just excited. If you’re not ready for us we’ll be happy to wait.”

Ms. Otonari gave a dismissing wave and smiled, “Oh no, it’s no trouble. We expect this from new parents, so everyone is already in the playroom if you’re ready.”

Tadashi suddenly felt like he’d swallowed his tongue yet again, so it was up to Kei to reaffirm that, yes, they were ready. Ready to meet their child.

Before he could blink, Tadashi found himself being led into a cheerfully decorated room with almost twenty children under the age of ten playing in various locations. A number of them looked up and stared as he and Kei were brought in, but that was probably due to how tall they both were. Kei was forced to duck under the doorway to the playroom, after all.

After smiling at a few of the children, Ms. Otonari turned back to the couple and pressed her hands together. “Since it’s your first visit, you are welcome to interact with all the children today. You don’t need to make a selection today, but please let us know if there are any children with whom you’d like a one-on-one session with.”

“Thank you. We will.” Kei’s voice was firm, yet polite as he escorted Tadashi further into the room. Ms. Otonari gave them another polite smile before exiting the room to give the men an opportunity to meet the children on their own. As soon as the couple were alone, Kei turned to Tadashi and whispered lowly in his ear, “Do you want to move around together or split ways?”

Tadashi took in a deep breath. He and Kei had already discussed their strategy for the first meeting weeks ago, but with Tadashi’s anxiety, Kei wanted to make sure he was still comfortable with their plan. It was one of the many things that made Tadashi fall head over heels for Kei all those years ago. And it was one of the reasons Tadashi was able to convince Kei that he would be a great father.

With another breath in and out, Tadashi let go of Kei’s hand. “I’ll be okay on my own. Besides, it’ll give us a better chance of finding a child who will fit the both of us.” Kei’s eyes searched Tadashi’s face for another second before he nodded, satisfied. Flashing his husband an unintentionally blinding smile, Tadashi turned around and walked to the other side of the room before he could change his mind.

Tadashi wandered noncommittally for the first few minutes. He knelt by a small group who were finger painting, and while they were all rather cute, Tadashi didn’t feel any particularly strong spark between them. Standing up, he eased his way past a loud pair of girls sword fighting, giving them a smile and internally cooing at the way the two got along, but not stopping to play. Glancing across the room, Tadashi saw Kei already sat down in the reading corner, one of the kids pushing a book into his hands.

Turning back to his own side of the room, Tadashi suddenly noticed a boy sitting by himself near the corner of the room. He had blond hair and his face was scrunched up in concentration as he slowly constructed a tower of colorful blocks. The boy’s tongue was poking out of the side of his mouth and his hair stuck up a bit at the back of his head, and Tadashi thought the boy looked so cute and endearing.

Tadashi walked over without hesitation, taking great care not to step on any other children in the room. The little boy was so engrossed in his tower he didn’t notice Tadashi approaching until the man was crouched down beside him.

“Hello there.”

The boy jumped a bit, the little cylindrical block in his hand falling to the carpet. Tadashi smiled softly as the little boy stared back at him, eyes wide and cheeks now dusted pink. It reminded Tadashi of when Kei was caught off guard early on in their relationship, like when Tadashi would spring a surprise kiss on him.

After a while, the boy looked down, blush spreading up to his cheeks. “H-hello.”

“My name is Tsukishima Tadashi, but you can call me Tsukki if that’s easier.”

The boy’s bottom lip stuck out for a moment. “Tsu-ki-shima. Tsuki-shima. Okay, I got it, Mr. Tsukishima.” The boy flashed a bright, obviously proud smile at Tadashi that melted the man’s heart, before announcing, “My name’s Hiroaki… would you like to play with me?”

Tadashi beamed. “Of course!”

And with that, Tadashi and Hiroaki got to work on “the biggest and best-est” tower the playroom had ever seen. It mostly consisted of Tadashi handing Hiroaki the pieces he needed as the young boy walked around, inspecting their creation carefully. There was a little bit of talking, but Tadashi let Hiroaki lead the way with that, too. Like he’d suspected, the young boy was a bit shy at first, but the longer they played the more open he became, asking Tadashi question after question and giving his own answers when prompted.

It wasn’t a question of if Hiroaki was the right one for the Tsukishima’s, but a matter of introducing Kei to the boy and starting the paperwork. Tadashi’s mind and heart were already settled, and it had only been ten minutes.

“Ta-da!” Hiroaki fell back on his butt, arms splayed as he presented the completed tower. Even if Tadashi hadn’t already fallen in love with the little boy, he would’ve been impressed by the creation. From the looks of it, every single block at their disposal had been used to make a rather structurally-sound castle, bridge and windows included.

“What do you think, Mr. Tsukishima?”

“I think it looks wonderful, Hiroaki. You should be proud. Would you mind if I invited someone over to take a look at it?”

Tadashi’s question called forth another blush on Hiroaki, but the boy nodded anyways. “Sure. I wanna show it to someone else, too.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah! Hold on, I’ll go get him!”

Tadashi giggled and watched as Hiroaki carefully walked around his castle before skittering across the room towards the table covered with papers and drawing supplies. Actually, Kei was sitting at the same table, smiling softly as he was shown a drawing. Deciding to wait until his husband’s attention wasn’t elsewhere, Tadashi watched as Hiroaki came to a stop beside the table. He tapped the shoulder of the child in front of Kei, claiming their attention.

Tadashi sees Kei’s eyes go comically wide as Hiroaki tugs the other child up to their feet. Said child is quick to grab Kei’s arm with their free hand, forcing the man to stand up and follow as the two children start walking back to Tadashi.

It’s then that Tadashi finally understands Kei’s shocked expression.

Hiroaki collapses onto his knees by Tadashi’s side, pulling the other boy and Kei down as a result before throwing his arms over the other boy’s shoulders. “Mr. Tsukishima! This is Kazumi. He’s my twin brother! See! We’re identical!”

Tadashi manages to keep his jaw from dropping, giving Kazumi a polite smile and greeting before meeting Kei’s eyes from across their heads. Okay… so the twin thing was a shock to his husband as well.

“Waaait. Your name is Mr. Tsukishima?” Kazumi turned his head, pouting up at Kei who quickly schooled his expression to one of polite curiosity. “But  _ your _ name is Mr. Tsukishima!”

Despite the shock, Tadashi is still unable to stifle his giggles at the boy’s cute expressions. “Well, of course he’s also a Tsukishima! He’s my husband!”

“Oh!” Hiroaki gaped up at the two men. “I didn’t know boys could get married to each other!”

“Yup! Girls can marry each other, too.” Tadashi let another string of giggles loose at the awestruck expressions on the boy’s faces. Well, at least he didn’t have to worry about  _ that _ information being an issue-  _ wait. _

“Hey, are you really tall, too? Mr. Tsuki… um…” Kazumi suddenly went pink, looking like he wanted to point at Tadashi but also not.

Tadashi realized what he was being asked right as Kei leaned forward. “You can call me Mr. Tsukki to tell us apart. And yes, we are both pretty tall.”

“Really? Can you show us?”

“Please?”

Tadashi sighed, a smile once again plastered across his face. “Well, how could I say no to such a polite request?” On the other side of the two boys, Kei rolled his eyes before easing himself to his feet, offering Tadashi a hand. Once they were both back on their feet, the couple looked down and were gifted with the most  _ adorable _ faces possible, the twins looking positively star struck at the Tsukishima’s height.

After a few seconds of silence, Kazumi whispered, “I wanna be that tall…”

Hiroaki jumped up onto his feet, eyes sparkling. “Me too! Me too! Do you think I’ll be as tall as you one day?”

“One day,” Kei offered, sending the twins into another lapse of awe before they started asking to be lifted up. To Tadashi’s surprise, Kei didn’t hesitate to scoop Kazumi off his feet, plopping the boy on his shoulders amide squeals of delight. Tadashi smiled at the sight momentarily before he felt Hiroaki tugging at his pants for the same treatment.

The boys reacted to their new height advantage in different ways, but both were adorable in their own right. Tadashi knew instantly what had drawn Kei to Kazumi as soon as the little boy let out a little screech, claiming to be a Pterodactyl. On Tadashi’s own shoulders, Hiroaki was just soaking in the sight, occasionally waving at the other children but mostly just kept a firm grip on Tadashi’s head.

The remainder of the Tsukishima’s meet-and-greet hour was spent in the twin’s company, pouring over the boy’s favorite books and games in the room. By the time Ms. Otonari came over to escort the couple out of the playroom, Tadashi’s cheeks were hurting from all the smiling he had done. Of course, it also broke his heart saying goodbye to the boys, especially with Hiroaki so close to tears as he and Kazumi waved after them until the door shut.

Tadashi once again let Kei do the talking as Ms. Otonari once again thanked them for visiting and reminding them to call once they decided on their one-on-one interviews. He slid his hand into Kei’s as they rode the train back out of the city, both men completely silent the whole way home.

As soon as they kicked their shoes off, Kei made a beeline for the couch and collapsed on the cushions, Tadashi wasting no time in climbing into his lap and snuggling under Kei’s arm. After a little bit of shifting and Tadashi accidentally getting his nose smacked, they found a comfortable position and relaxed into it. They stayed quiet for another minute, neither man quite ready to voice his thoughts, even though they both had many.

Tadashi buried his face into Kei’s shirt, letting his husband’s scent wash over him for the time being, while Kei busied himself with studying the freckles dotting the back of Tadashi’s right hand. Kei gently turning the hand around so he could find even the most faded mark. The freckles on Tadashi’s hands were more dispersed than the ones on his face, congregating around his thumbs while his fingers were lucky to have a dot or two.

Kazumi had freckles on the backs of his hands, too. Kei had noticed when he’d glanced over at his drawing earlier on. Of course he had noticed the drawings themselves, the paper littered with various dinosaurs and the occasional kitten, but the freckles had been what really encouraged Kei to sit and ask the little boy his name. Now that he thought about it, Kei had totally forgotten to check Hiroaki’s hands for freckles like he’d meant to.

Feeling Kei squeeze his hand a little tighter, Tadashi groaned and shifted a little, rolling his head to the side for some fresh air. “Did you have fun today, Kei?”

Kei’s response is a little hum that vibrates all the way into Tadashi’s chest. “Yeah. You?”

“Mmhm.”

“Good.”

Tadashi watched as Kei moved their hands around, eventually slotting their fingers together and pulling them up so Kei could plant little kisses across Tadashi’s fingertips. The action was sweet and it unleashed a swarm of butterflies in Tadashi’s stomach. Kei was such a good husband, and he would make an even greater father.

But still…

Tadashi turned his face back into Kei’s chest, squeezing Kei’s hand. “Two kids? At once?”

Kei hummed in response, his free hand now trailing his fingers down the curve of Tadashi’s spine. “Why not?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One Year Later

Tadashi muffled what felt like the millionth yawn into the crook of his arm, keeping a watchful gaze on the stove in front of him even as his eyes watered. The eggs he was cooking sizzled quietly even as Tadashi glared and poked at them hatefully. On the opposite side of the kitchen counter, Kei was double counting his paperwork, wisely keeping his comments to himself.

No one was sure what supernatural force could have both the power and such a vendetta against Tadashi, but for as long as the poor boy had been allowed in the kitchen, Tadashi was only ever able to successfully cook eggs so long as he never took his eyes off them. If he so much as glanced in a different direction for five seconds, the eggs would burn to a crisp and make the whole apartment smell nasty for hours. In the past, he had gotten around said issue by either having his mother, and eventually Kei deal with the eggs while he bustled about making the rest of breakfast, or they just went without eggs in the morning.

But now, with two more mouths to feed which consists of growing boys who needed the protein, Tadashi had decided to just grit his teeth and bear a few tedious and stressful moments in the morning to make the “devil breakfast”.

Kei, of course, found the whole situation hilarious. But he knew better than to tease his husband about his egg-cooking deficiency when he was in the middle of proving it. Last time, it had ended with Kei serving himself and having to wheedle Tadashi for an embarrassingly long time for a kiss before work. He was positive that the next time he brought it up, he’d be sleeping on the couch for a night or two.

With that threat hanging over his mind, Kei gave his husband plenty of working space as he went about his usual morning routine. After setting the breakfast table, he started moving back and forth between the living room and his and Tadashi’s bedroom, grabbing the various things he’d need to take to work which had somehow managed to disperse themselves overnight. Up and down the hallway he went, passing by the boy’s bedroom and bathroom as he went, making it easy to usher the boys out of bed, into and out of the bathroom, and into their school clothes for the day as he went.

But that was the only easy thing about it.

“Hiroaki Tsukishima! I will not tell you to brush your hair again! If I get a phone call saying birds have started nesting in your hair at school…” Kei trailed off as his son sluggishly plodded into the bathroom with a moan, eyes only half open. Satisfied for the moment, Kei turned around only for Kazumi, who had somehow managed to put his school jacket on upside down, to come running out of his bedroom and straight into Kei’s legs.

“Oops! Sorry, Dad!”

Kazumi attempted to run off again, but Kei caught him. “Oh no, you don’t. One, there’s no running inside. Two, your jacket’s on wrong.”

“Oh, yeah.” Kazumi quickly wiggled out of the clothing and his dad’s grip, tossing out a ‘thank’s dad’ over his shoulder as he went on his way to the kitchen, now putting his jacket on inside out. Kei took a deep breath in and out before finally making it to his own bedroom. His missing stapler was right where Tadashi said it was, behind the pencil holder on the desk. Scooping it up, Kei meandered back into the sitting room, poking his head into the bathroom to make sure Hiroaki hadn’t fallen asleep face first in the sink again.

He hadn’t, and as Kei exited the hallway, he saw Tadashi and the boys serving breakfast, Kazumi’s jacket finally on properly and Hiroaki’s hair free of tangles. The chatter and domesticity of it all made Kei stop for a moment, stapler only halfway into his work bag.

Their sons had been living with them for less than a year now, but it felt like they’d been there forever. And yet, at the same time, Kei was constantly overwhelmed by how  _ new _ it all was. Tadashi took to fatherhood like a duck to water, somehow always knowing what to say to ease the tension and bring a smile to his family’s faces. Kei felt like he was stumbling all over the place in comparison, but with Tadashi making it a point to tell Kei what a good dad he was every day… well, he was slowly starting to believe it.

The moment passed, leaving a warm spot in Kei’s chest in its wake, and he quickly finished packing his things before throwing the bag over his shoulder. As a high school teacher, Kei found himself pulling long hours, going in early, leaving late, and bringing work home to finish in the evening. It was hard work, and while Kei would certainly love more free hours to spend with his family, he tried to make do with what he had.

Walking into the “dining room”, which was really just a table for four just off to the side of the kitchen, Kei’s first stop was Kazumi. Kei ruffled his hair, the boy making small noises of complaint even as he batted at Kei’s hand playfully and wished him a good day. Next was Hiroaki, who still wasn’t fully awake and didn’t react much to the head pats, but he still gave Kei a sleepy smile.

Tadashi was waiting for Kei next to the stove, still wearing the black and orange apron Sugawara had given them as a housewarming gift. He was holding out the breakfast and lunch bentos he’d made for Kei, everyone else’s lunches wrapped up and waiting behind him on the counter. Kei quickly slid the bentos into his bag even as he leaned forward and gave his husband a lingering kiss, both of them letting out a sigh when they parted.

Ignoring Kazumi’s giggling from the table, Tadashi wound his arms around Kei’s neck, gently combing through his hair with his fingers. “Hm… what would you like for dinner tonight? Since it’s the Friday before break I should be able to actually come home on time.”

Kei hummed, pressing his face into the top of his husband’s head. It was still a little damp still from his shower this morning, and it smelled strongly of mint. Kei took in a deep breath before pressing a kiss there and pulling back. “I don’t have much of a preference. I love everything you cook.” 

Tadashi narrowed his eyes for a moment, not sure if the compliment was meant to hide a sly comment or not, but in the end he decided to ignore it. “Hmm… how about curry?”

Kei nodded and placed a swift peck to Tadashi’s cheek before pulling away. “It sounds perfect. I’ll see you tonight.”

“Okay.” Tadashi let his husband pull away, a big smile spread across his face from the kiss. “See you tonight.”

“Goodbye.”

“Bye-bye, Dad!”

The front door was shut gently, and Tadashi felt his heart go all warm and mushy because he knew the Kei did it on purpose, since Tadashi didn’t like the sound of slamming doors. With a big sigh of affection, Tadashi finally pulled the apron off and tossed it onto some empty counter space. Smiling broadly, he walked over to his place at the table, already laughing as Kazumi attempted to feed his dozing brother.

Twenty minutes and a quick cleaning of rice from Hiroaki’s hair later, Tadashi was walked out of the apartment, his sons at his heels. The twins took a different train line than Tadashi to get to school, but their train left from the same platform as Tadashi’s, so it just made sense for them all to walk together. But that didn’t mean the boys weren’t always super ecstatic to walk with their daddy every morning.

As per usual, as soon as they walked outside Hiroaki’s energy took a sudden upswing. Before long, he and Kazumi had a running commentary going about what they were supposed to be covering in their classes today while Tadashi listened intently. Before the boys had come into his and Kei’s lives, Tadashi used to spend his entire commute thinking and, occasionally, worrying about work and what technological disaster he might have to deal with that day. But now, those anxieties only came to him while on the train, and even those were often interrupted with thoughts of his children and husband.

Before long the Tsukishima’s made it to the train station and the boy’s train was getting ready to pull in. Bending down so he could rub at their cheeks with his thumbs, Tadashi gave both boys one more smile before wishing them a good day and sending them off. The boys climbed aboard and were quick to find a window, waving at their daddy even as the train pulled away. Tadashi waved back, mildly aware that some people were watching, but not really caring one way or another.

Two minutes later and Tadashi was on his own train, finding a rail to hold onto in the packed car. Despite being jostled from side to side as the train rumbled forward and knowing that he had a full day of panicking medical students and teachers trying to get their technology problems fixed the day before the long weekend began, Tadashi was smiling all the way there.

* That Evening *

Tadashi released a groan as he finally sat down at his desk. His back ached terribly, still not over the hour he’d spent hunched over the main printer at the university library, trying to fix a  _ breathtakingly _ large paper jam while anxious and weeping students waited around for some good news. When he finally gave the papers a good yank and the machine sputtered to life, kicking out paper after paper, it felt like the entire floor had cheered. And now he was back in his semi-comfortable chair with twenty minutes left before he could clock out. Hopefully no one would bother him, because the whole day had been one disaster aversion after the other for the department. Tadashi had a feeling that when they reopened on Tuesday the I.T. department would be receiving a number of thank-you gifts from the campus students and staff.

But for now, all Tadashi wanted was to go home and cuddle the crap out of his family. His work bag was already packed up and ready for him to grab and leave at the drop of a hat. He just had to wait until 5 pm, and as long as no one asked for his help specifically he would be left alone by his co-workers and boss-

“Mr. Tsukishima? You have a walk-in.”

_ Fuck. _

Fighting to keep his thoughts out of his expression, Tadashi sat up a little straighter in his chair and gave Hanashi a small smile, noting the apologetic expression the other man was giving him. “Okay, send them in.”

Tadashi immediately regretted his words when Ms. Chizuro Kaba walked around Tadashi’s coworker, a shy smile on her lips as she greeted him. Tadashi resisted the urge to groan as he gestured for her to take a seat on the other side of his desk. Ms. Kaba was one of the university’s newer professors, being brought on to teach some of the lower-level English courses for students planning on working in the larger cities or for international companies. She’d had some trouble her first few weeks understanding the university’s state-of-the-art technology and Tadashi had been kind enough to help walk her through it all.

But then she started calling for his assistance whenever even the slightest technological inconvenience popped up. At first Tadashi tried to be patient and understanding, but he quickly became annoyed with how she was treating him like her personal employee who was at her beck and call.

It wasn’t until he talked to his boss and they started sending some of Tadashi’s coworkers over that the real reason came out. Judging by all the personal questions Ms. Kaba had about Tadashi and the fact that she suddenly started to understand the university’s system a lot better when he wasn’t the one helping her out, it was clear that she didn’t have as much trouble understanding computers as she didn’t understand why Tadashi wouldn’t flirt back with her.

Flashing his ring did nothing, and it was only at times like these that Tadashi found himself cursing him and Kei for not settling for the simplistic golden bands when they got married. Instead, their rings were black obsidian with two thin rings of gold and silver in the middle. The rings were absolutely beautiful and despite how much Tadashi loved looking at them, they did little to ward off amorous women.

Which meant Tadashi now had to spend the next fifteen minutes with Ms. Kaba trying to flirt with him in his own office. A part of him wanted to just tell her that he was happily married to a wonderful husband who took care of Tadashi and their children better than she could ever dream of, but he was afraid. Homosexual marriage had only just been written into law three years ago, and while Tadashi’s boss and coworkers were kind and accepting and the univeristy itself took pride in being “entirely inclusive”, there was still that fear of being fired or even attacked because he let his home-life slip to the wrong person.

So, he’d just have to deal with this until he could go home.

Sinking back in his chair, Tadashi offered a polite smile to his guest. “Good afternoon, Ms. Kaba. Is there something I can help you with?”

“Oh, a number of things, I imagine.”

_ Um, okay. Guess she’s trying a more direct approach this time. _ Tadashi knew he was blushing, so he quickly looked away towards his computer, pretending like he needed to pull something up on it. As he clicked his mouse around aimlessly, the picture frame on his right caught his eye. It was holding the first family photo of their first family trip with Hiroaki and Kazumi, and on busy days it gave Tadashi the drive to finish even the most difficult of projects. The beach was in the background, white crested waves dotting the dark blue ocean, and the Tsukishima’s were sitting on a white railing with the boys in their father’s laps, everyone smiling widely at the camera. Even Kei was smiling, one arm around Hiroaki and the other one wrapped around Tadashi’s waist.

Casually shifting the frame to be more in Ms. Kaba’s line of sight, Tadashi cleared his throat. “Is there an issue with your classroom computer? Or is the printing still giving you trouble? I’m leaving shortly but I can arrange to have someone else take a look at it before they leave, or at least put you in early for Tuesday.”

“Um, actually… Mr. Tsukishima, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind attending the Moon Festival with me this weekend. Since your last name means ‘moon island’ I thought you might have an interest?”

It took all of Tadashi’s strength not to laugh, suddenly thrown back into his memories of high school. He remembered how girls always thought they could win Kei’s favor using moon related items, unaware of how little Kei cared about those kinds of things. As it was, the Tsukishima’s  _ were _ attending the Moon Festival this year, because Kazumi and Hiroaki had insisted on it, in order to celebrate their new last name.

The sudden spring of warmth in his chest from thinking of his children is what finally drove Tadashi to the brink. If Ms. Kaba wasn’t going to be put off by a wedding ring, abnormal though it may look, then it was unlikely she’d stop unless Tadashi either scared her away or revealed exactly what kind of tree she was barking at.

Shifting his photograph once again, letting his fingertip trace at the fancy decals engraved into the wood, Tadashi shook his head. “Sorry, but I already have plans to attend the festival with my family.” He nudges the photo one last time, and this time Ms. Kaba’s eyes fall on it.

“Oh? Is that your… brother? He’s certainly handsome. And your nephews are adorable.”

Again, there’s a call to laugh. Tadashi doesn’t do it, of course, but his smile was definitely on the more  _ ‘How have you survived this long’ _ side as he answered, “I’m glad you think so, but they’re not my nephews. Those are my sons. And my husband.”

* Time Skip *

Kei groaned a little as he shifted the heavy bag hanging off his shoulder. It had been a testing day, which meant Kei had a whole weekend of grading to look forward too and multiple test packets to carry home. At least as a science teacher, even for the college prep classes he didn’t have to worry about reading overly-lengthy papers, but still…

“Dad! Dad, over here!”

Drawn out of his sulking, Kei looked up, surprised to see that he had already made it to the boy’s elementary school. Of course, they were pretty close to Kei’s school so it wasn’t like it was a long walk in any sense, but maybe he had been walking faster without realizing it.

Either way, Kei waved a hand as his boys came running, their school and volleyball bags bouncing off their hips and sides. It really shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that Kei and Tadashi’s children would fall into the volleyball hype of their fathers. But Kei hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. Maybe if Tadashi’s mother hadn’t had the boys watch the video recordings of their high school games, or if Akiteru hadn’t bought them matching volleyballs for their first birthdays as part of the family, it would’ve taken longer, but that didn’t matter much now.

At the very least, since the boys demanded to walk home with Kei after practice, since they walked to school with Tadashi, Kei had a timer of sorts to keep him from working too long at his work desk. And it gave him some one-on-one time with his sons, which he looked forward to every week day.

Once the boys made it to Kei’s side they started walking to the train station. Hiroaki immediately launched into a play-by-play scene that happened during practice, with Kazumi interjecting at certain points to remind his father of who was who on their team. Kei was glad that his sons mistook his apathy for general forgetfulness, because he wasn’t sure they would be able to understand the concept of “I-don’t-care-much-unless-it’s-about-you” just yet.

Their walk to the station progressed in a similar manner, and as they boarded the packed train, Kei quickly took Kazumi’s hand and told him to hold onto Hiroaki as Kei grabbed onto one of the metal poles running along the ceiling. By his waist, the boys were still talking in hushed tones, and Kei was left to people watch. Or, more accurately, keep a sharp eye out for anyone taking “special interest” in his sons.

Most of the time the boys only attracted a few smiles or respectful nods, but every once in a while Kei would catch a shifty-looking character nearby. He never said anything outright, not one to make a scene, but he always made sure to hold onto his sons a little tighter. Tadashi was the only one who noticed when Kei tensed up, which normally made Tadashi tense as well, but as soon as they got home and had a moment to themselves, Kei found himself being smothered by Tadashi, his husband cooing over how protective Kei was of their children.

Thoughts of his husband carried Kei through the train ride and out onto the street. As soon as they were off the platform Hiroaki let go of his brother and latched himself onto Kei’s left hand. The three walked on in temporary silence, the boys kicking at whatever rocks crossed their paths and calling out greetings to the various shop owners they passed by. Kei merely nodded at the strangers when they responded, feeling a little embarrassed by all the attention they were receiving, but a small part of him was proud of his boys. So far they didn’t seem to have Tadashi’s strong social anxiety or Kei’s apathy, which meant they both had numerous friends in class and at practice.

They weren’t alone.

Kei gave their hands a brief squeeze, trying to silently convey the emotion. He wasn’t sure if the message was received, but Kazumi suddenly pulled his hand free before wrapping them both around Kei’s wrist and pulling a bit. Rolling his eyes, Kei tightened his elbow and pulled Kazumi up off the ground, making him giggle and kick his feet a little. Kei was quick to put him back down, his arm muscles not what they were back when he was playing volleyball daily, only for Hiroaki to make the same kind of tug on Kei’s other arm.

This back and forth continued all the way back to their apartment, and by the time the boys let go to run up the stairs to their door, Kei’s arms and back were tired and a little sore.  _ They’re getting to be too heavy for carrying with one arm, _ Kei thought, a little put out by the information. He did enjoy their walking traditions and making the boys laugh… but he also didn’t want to throw out his back in his early thirties. Maybe they could come up with some other form of play?

By the time Kei made it up the stairs, the boys had already opened the unlocked apartment door and ran inside, calling out for their daddy. Like Kei had expected, Tadashi was in the kitchen, curry already simmering in a saucepan behind him as the boys were scooped up into Tadashi’s arms. Shedding his work bag, Kei gave Tadashi a quick kiss to his forehead before moving to take over dinner, the boys beginning their retelling of everything they had told Kei during their walk.

By the time Kazumi had finished recounting his first successful service streak, Kei announced that dinner was ready and Tadashi shooed the boys to the bathroom to clean up. They hurried off without a fuss, bickering over who would use the sink first. Tadashi gave himself a satisfied nod before turning around to send Kei off as well. Only, he was interrupted by a long overdue welcome-home kiss before he could get a word out. Tadashi sank into it with a groan, hands drifting up Kei’s chest to his shoulders while his husband wound his arms around Tadashi’s waist.

Just as Tadashi opened his lips for his husband, he heard the sink in the bathroom shut off and the sound of little feet padding down the hallway back to the kitchen. Their kiss broke with a wet smack and before the word ‘unfair’ could even cross Tadashi’s mind, he felt a sharp pinch on his ass.

“Tsukki!” Tadashi yelped and smacked Kei’s chest even as his husband backed off with a sly smirk. Knowing he was blushing furiously, Tadashi huffed and stepped backwards towards the table, not willing to present Kei with a target even though their sons had just run into the kitchen.

“Dad! You need to go wash your hands!”

“Mm, I do. I’ll be right back.”

Tadashi puffed out his cheeks in a pout. Kei was such a tease…

“Daddy, do I  _ have _ to eat the veggies?”

“Yes, you do, Mister. Now hurry up and sit down, Dad should be back soon.”

True to Tadashi’s word, Kei was quick to return and sit down with the rest of his family, the children sitting across from each other with their fathers between them both. Before the boys had even officially been adopted, Tadashi had insisted that Kei help him decide the best place for each member of their family to eat their meals. He didn’t know if letting the boys sit next to each other was a good or a bad thing, and if they did then who would sit by Kei and who would sit by Tadashi?

Kei had, thankfully, stepped in and reminded Tadashi that he was overthinking it before saying they should sit in an alternating pattern. That way the boys would be facing each other while also sitting next to both of their fathers. “And,” Kei added on, “that way I can send you bedroom eyes all through dinner until the boys are old enough to understand what I’m doing- Hey!”

That last bit had come from Tadashi tackling Kei onto the couch for a surprise pillow fight, but despite everything Tadashi had gone with Kei’s suggestion for the table.

As they ate, Tadashi felt himself completely relax for the first time today, humming thoughtfully around his food as Hiroaki chatted away about his classes. Hiroaki during dinnertime was always a complete 180 from breakfast, the blond boy animated and waving his chopsticks around as he painted each and every scene before starting his story. Tadashi always looked forward to hearing about Hiroaki’s day, because it usually ended with the whole table laughing.

To Tadashi’s left, Kazumi was content to let his brother take the wheel with the conversation, since he was usually too busy stuffing his face to do more than nod along. Tonight, however, his quiet disposition seemed to be more because he was trying to smuggle most of his vegetables into the napkin next to his plate. He wasn’t very good at hiding it, and Tadashi would’ve said something sooner if Kei wasn’t taking the incentive and replacing each and every vegetable Kazumi tried to hide from the serving pan in the middle of the table.

“Daddy! Make him stop! I don’t want to eat any more veggies!”

Tadashi raised an eyebrow before unfolding Kazumi’s napkin, revealing the row of carrot and onion slices that had been stuffed into it. Kazumi’s face went red and he looked down at his lap. Releasing a sigh, Tadashi scooped up the napkin and placed the carrots on his own plate before tossing the napkin in the trash behind him.

“Eat half of the vegetables on your plate and we’ll call it a deal.”

Kazumi looked up with a pout, a whine starting when Kei suddenly cleared his throat. Kazumi’s pout deepened, but he went back to stabbing at his plate. Tadashi nodded and turned back to Hiroaki, asking him to continue telling them about the milk incident at lunch time.

Thankfully for all of their sakes, everyone was in a better mood when dinner was finished. Even Kazumi, though a pile of diced onions had been pushed into a pile at the edge of his plate, had eaten all of his rice and meat, so Tadashi wasn’t about to complain. He hadn’t liked onions much when he was that age, either.

Kei, with the small appetite he had, was the first one done as always and had already started to clear away the table when Hiroaki finished his last story. He beamed around as his daddy laughed so hard tears were coming out of his eyes and his dad’s shoulders were shaking, meaning he found it to be very funny too.

Kicking his feet a bit, Hiroaki tilted his head and asked, “Daddy, how was your day?”

“Oh, me? Not as interesting as yours, I must say! Although someone from work did invite me to the Moon Festival this weekend.”

The room went quiet, Kei stopping short in the middle of grabbing the boy’s plates, he and his sons staring at Tadashi in interest and… something else. Then Kei blinked and grabbed the plates, walking off like nothing had happened. Hiroaki and Kazumi were different stories, no longer bouncing in their seats waiting to be released.

“They did?”

“Are you gonna go with them?”

Tadashi smiled softly, reaching out to gently rub his thumbs over their cheeks, smoothing out the worry lines by their eyes. “No, I’m not. I told her I was already going with my family, and I wasn’t going to miss that for the world.”

At the kitchen sink, Kei smiled to himself as the boys cheer up immediately, asking if they could be excused to go do their homework. Tadashi let them go, watching them disappear around the corner before grabbing his own plate and glass and placing them on the counter by his husband. Kei had already filled the sink with hot water and soap, so after giving him a brief hug and nuzzling his face between Kei’s shoulder blades, Tadashi moved to the side to help dry and put away the dishes.

They worked in comfortable silence, accompanied by the sloshing of water in the sink, the faint bickering that could be heard from the boy’s bedroom, and the brush of their fingers as they exchange dishes, both of them fighting against the urge to hold the other’s hand. Tadashi giggled whenever Kei flicked his wet fingers at him, creating temporary dots of water and soap on Tadashi’s arms that mixed in with his more permanent freckles. He responded by gently elbowing his husband before laying his head on Kei’s shoulder, staying there until he felt a kiss pressed to the top of his head. After which he would straighten up until Kei started the cycle over again.

This silent back and forth continued until Kei drained the water and Tadashi had put away the very last dish. From down the hallway, Tadashi could still pick up on the boy’s bickering. Probably over some homework problem they couldn’t agree on an answer to. He nibbled at his bottom lip. For as well as the boys got along together, they did argue quite a bit. It never escalated beyond raised voices and maybe a little name calling, but sometimes Tadashi worried that one day it would end in a fight. He hoped they would ease up with arguing as they grew older.

A hand on his shoulder pulled Tadashi out of his thoughts just in time for him to turn around and be pulled into Kei’s arms. They kissed luxuriously, with practiced ease and no small amount of desire for each other. Tadashi brought his hands up to cradle Kei’s face, humming happily as he felt his husband squeeze his hips, tugging them impossibly closer to each other.

Four kisses in and Tadashi finally pulled back for a proper breath, knees shaking just a little. Kei leaned forward, peppering little kisses and nips along Tadashi’s throat, forcing a sharp ‘oh’ to escape his husband. 

“So… you have an admirer at work, do you?”

Tadashi attempted to snicker, but the warm lips on his neck and the low rumble of Kei’s voice made it sound more like a whimper than anything. Tangling his fingers in Kei’s blond curls, Tadashi was rewarded with a moan and two seconds to think.

“It’s the same woman I’ve mentioned before.”

“Mm. So she’s not a threat?”

Tadashi giggled, pushing himself up onto his toes so he could bonk their noses together. “Nope! I’m pretty sure I finally got her to back off, too. By the way, she thought you were very handsome until she learned you  _ weren’t _ my brother.”

Kei snorts, accidentally knocking their foreheads together, which sends the both of them into a giggle fit. Kei recovered first and went straight back to giving Tadashi kisses all over his face, nuzzling his cheeks to make Tadashi laugh more. They were both so wrapped up in each other that they almost didn’t notice the sound of small feet pitter-pattering towards them.

Tadashi managed to wiggle out of Kei’s hold just in time for Kazumi to stop in the archway leading out of the kitchen, Hiroaki stumbling behind him.

“Daddy, can we watch a movie?”

“Have you finished your homework?”

“Uh-huh!”

Tadashi smiled and turned around for Kei’s opinion. His husband merely shrugged, so Tadashi turned back to his son. “Yes, but only one. You both have dentist appointments tomorrow morning.”

“Okay, Daddy! C’mon Hiro!”

“Coming!”

The two boys raced off, and almost instantly their fathers hear them arguing over what they were going to watch. With a sigh, Kei steps forward and presses his cheek to the top of Tadashi’s head, hands coming up to rub at his husband’s shoulders.

“They’re quite the handful, aren’t they?”

“Yeah, but that’s why we have four hands between us!”

Kei can’t help another snort, moving so they’re face to face once more. “God, that was so cheesy, even for you.”

“You’re cheesy.” Tadashi gave Kei another short peck. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed how much you like to hold me.”

Kei opened his mouth, possibly to attempt a rebuttal, but he was interrupted by the sound of something falling with a heavy thud in the sitting room.

“I’m okay!”

Now it was Tadashi’s turn to sigh, giving Kei a tired but loving smile. “I think that’s our cue.”

Kei nodded and followed his husband out of the kitchen, ready to indulge in more of the family time he’d been craving all day long.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three years later

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m still obsessed with Parental/Domestic Tsukkiyama, and since some of you guys seem to like it too I’m back with another installment, but I do think this will be the last one. Sorry. Hope you like it!

In the dark recesses of winter, Kei thanked his lucky stars that he had married a smart man. Kei himself was smart, sure, but Tadashi was the kind of smart that led to him convincing Kei to buy a heated blanket for the cold months of the year. A blanket the two were currently cuddled under, enjoying a haven of warmth against the chilly air of the bedroom.

As Kei slowly woke up, his first action was to quickly drag the blanket back over his bare shoulder. A part of him wanted to shove his whole head under the blanket but he didn’t want to risk accidentally waking his sleeping husband. Tadashi was snuggled against Kei’s chest, his nose tucked in the crook of Kei’s neck and their legs tangled together under the bedsheets. Kei shivered as Tadashi exhaled warmly across his collarbone. He shifted ever so slightly to wrap his arms more securely around Tadashi’s back.

Tadashi must not have been as asleep as Kei first thought, because in response Tadashi let out a little moan and nuzzled deeper into Kei’s side. The sound reawakened Kei’s memories from the night before and how they had passed the time between the kid’s bedtime and their own.  Sliding his left hand down his husband’s back, Kei listened as Tadashi made more soft sounds. What time was it? If it was early enough, Kei might have enough time to wake Tadashi for a  _ fun _ start to the morning. Had they kept the bedroom door locked?

The sound of a doorknob turning nearby answered Kei’s internal question, stopping his hand in the middle of Tadashi’s back. He shut his eyes with a heavy sigh as the door leading to the hallway swung open. The floorboards creaked quietly around the bottom of the bed and towards Kei’s side, letting the man mentally follow his child around the room.

Something tugged faintly on the sheets.

“Dad? It’s okay, you can sleep. How do you turn on the stove?”

_ Aaand, I’m up. _

With an incredible amount of will, Kei managed to ease himself out of Tadashi’s grip and roll to his other side. A big brown smudge greeted him from the edge of the bed. Reaching over the smudge, Kei grabbed his glasses from his nightstand and put them on. Now instead of a smudge, Kei was confronted by his daughter’s big brown eyes staring up at him. Haruhi could just barely peek over the edge of Kei and Tadashi’s bed and judging from how tightly she was clenching their bedsheets to keep in place she was probably on her tiptoes. The couple had a higher bed than most since they were both rather tall men, so it wasn’t that their daughter was overly short. She had actually grown quite a bit since she first became a Tsukishima last year.

Kei could still remember the day he, Tadashi, Hiroaki and Kazumi went to find the next member of their family. The boys had been eagerly talking about it for weeks, excited to bring another child into their happy home. They did have one precondition for their parents, however: they wanted a baby brother. No ifs, ands, or buts about it, a baby sister just wasn’t going to cut it. The demand had amused their parents, but they had agreed to not make a selection without the boy’s input.

The family of four had gone back to the group home the twins had come from, the boys both happy and sad that all of their friends had already been adopted. But they were both quick to shake those feelings off and remind their parents of the deal once more. Only a little brother, no sisters…

And not even five seconds later, little Haruhi toddled up to the twins. Her long brown hair was pulled up into pigtails and she blinked her big doe eyes up at them before asking if they would play superheroes with her. Kei and Tadashi trailed behind the kids and watched as their sons’ faces cycled through fifty different emotions as they played. Ten minutes in, Hiroaki “saved” Haruhi from a harrowing demise and she gave him a grateful hug.

And that was that. Haruhi became the newest Tsukishima.

Not that it was completely smooth sailing. Tadashi had confided in Kei that he was a little nervous about Haruhi being the only girl in their family and Kei had shared his concern. They had decided years ago that three children was their maximum. How Shouyo and Tobio could even consider a fourth on top of their volleyball careers was (according to Kei) borderline insane.

Thankfully, it became clear after a week of living together that Haruhi was incredibly pleased about the gender arrangement. She was the family’s princess, and she wasn’t going to let anyone forget it.

“Good morning, sweetheart,” Kei finally greeted.

“Good morning, Dad. I’m hungry.”

Kei huffed a quiet laugh and reached out his right hand to fix the part in her hair. “You’re definitely your Daddy’s daughter.”

Haruhi’s response was to giggle and press her chubby cheek against the mattress, blinking up at Kei with those big puppy eyes, seemingly unaware of how she was absolutely destroying her dad’s heart. So, in self defense, Kei grabbed his daughter under her armpits and pulled her up into the bed, momentarily forgetting he was trying to let his husband sleep in and rolling over to trap their daughter in between them. Haruhi didn’t seem to mind too much, squealing and giggling even as she protested that she was too hungry to play.

On the other side of the parent sandwich, Tadashi woke up with a soft groan. He lazily opened his eyes as Kei tucked their daughter into his chest and smothered the side of her face with kisses. Haruhi scrunched up her face, squinting up at her other father when she noticed him watching.

“Good morning, Daddy!”

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Tadashi leaned in and pressed his own kiss to Haruhi’s forehead. “Where are your brothers?”

“Watchin’ Naruto. I want breakfast.”

Tadashi hummed in thought and reached out to pull Haruhi into his own arms. Before he could, however, Kei tightened his hold and rolled them both away.

“No. She’s mine.”

“Dad, noooo! Daddy, save me!”

Tadashi laughed out loud as he sat up and stretched his back. He pretended to think before shrugging dismissively. “Sorry, Haruhi. I’m not strong enough to defeat Dad. But if he won’t share you, I’ll just have to find the boys for my morning hug. More hugs for me!”

Kei threw back the sheets and leapt out of bed in a heartbeat, both parents thankful in that moment that they had the sense of mind to pull on boxers and sweatpants before falling asleep last night. Haruhi looped her arms around Kei’s neck and yelped with delight as they hurried towards the living room, Haruhi shouting for her brothers to run.

Despite the warning, the boys didn’t move fast enough to escape. Kei’s reflexes were too quick and he was able to snatch Hiroaki up as he tried to escape into the kitchen. Kazumi, who was still faster than his brother in the mornings, managed to weave out of his Dad's reach between the couch and the kotatsu table and made a break for his bedroom. He only made a few steps into the hallway before he ran into Tadashi who abruptly stopped straightening the shirt he had pulled on and hauled Kazumi over his shoulder.

With all three children captured and fake complaining around their laughter, the two fathers collapsed onto the couch with the kids still in their arms. Hiroaki tried to make another escape but was snagged by the ankle and promptly tickled in retribution. The couch was a bit of a snug fit now that the boys were starting to get bigger and with the addition of Haruhi, but in the giddiness of the morning fun it felt rather cozy with all five of them squished together.

Tadashi waited another two minutes for everyone to calm down before slipping out from under the pile. “I suppose I should make breakfast now that we’re all up. Any requests?”

“Oh, Daddy, can we have natto?”

Kazumi and Haruhi made equally disgusted noises at their brother’s suggestion, wrinkling their noses. Tadashi thought it over before saying, “You know what? Let me get dressed first and then I’ll teach you how to make your own.”

Hiroaki beamed and jumped off the couch. “Really?”

“Sure. So long as you promise to clean up any mess you make and you don’t make too much that you can't finish it all.”

“Because I won’t be eating your leftovers,” Kazumi followed up, looking more and more interested in the show playing on the television. Kei carefully moved him and Haruhi off of his lap and stood to follow Tadashi back to their bedroom. It was a bit too cold to not have a shirt or socks on.

Tadashi was already pulling out a sweater and some fuzzy socks as Kei closed the door. Walking over, Kei slid his arms back around Tadashi’s waist and dropped his head down into the crook of his neck. Tadashi hummed and gently ruffled Kei’s hair with his free hand.

“Good morning, Tsukki.”

“‘Morning, Tadashi.” Kei gave his husband two quick pecks, on the cheek and lips respectively, before meandering to the bathroom. His cold feet were begging him to take a hot shower.

* * *

The day passed by in a lazy crawl, mostly spent on the couch or tucked underneath the kotatsu table. A fresh flurry of snowflakes started drifting past the windows around lunch time, but the kids weren’t all that interested in playing in the thin layer of white fluff today. The boy’s afternoon volleyball practice had been cancelled because their coach was sick, and they seemed quite content to enjoy their day off indoors.

After a small lunch, Tadashi and Kei put on a movie for the kids and went about their own adult chores, cleaning the kitchen and balancing the checkbook and continuing the never ending cycle of laundry. Once the movie ended, Kei shooed the boys back to their room to do homework and scooped Haruhi up onto the couch for their daily reading. Haruhi had gotten hooked on a new chapter book series about dragons and Kei gladly read along with her.

This left Tadashi all alone to finish folding the three loads of laundry that had been drying in the laundry room and around his and Kei’s bedroom all morning. Not that he minded the workload too much. There was something calming about carefully separating, smoothing, and folding clothes that Tadashi enjoyed. Sometimes he even liked to put on some music or a podcast and just zone out in the repetitive motions.

Today he decided to just listen to the quietness of the house, a rarity with all three children under the same roof. Every so often Tadashi would hear the boys talking in their room, but they weren’t shouting so he let them be. If they were goofing off and didn’t finish their homework today, they’d just have to do it on Sunday.

After nearly half an hour, Tadashi finally finished folding all the laundry. Cracking his back, he walked out into the hallway down to the boy’s bedroom. Knocking quietly so as to not startle them, Tadashi opened the door and smiled at his sons. Hiroaki was bent over the small table in the middle of the room and Kazumi was laying on his stomach on his bed. Both boys looked up at the door opening.

“Hi, Daddy.”

“Hi boys. Your laundry is folded up in mine and Dad’s bedroom. Could you put it away, please?”

The twins frantically got up and rushed past Tadashi, obviously eager to have a break from doing homework. Tadashi nodded in satisfaction before continuing down the hall to find the rest of his family. Haruhi wasn’t quite old enough to put away all her laundry, but she still liked to help her parents do it. It made her feel grown up and included.

He stopped at the entrance to the living room and immediately had to bite back an aww. Kei and Haruhi were passed out on the couch, Haruhi tucked into the crook of Kei’s right arm against the back of the couch. Tadashi quickly fished his phone out of his pocket to take a quick photo before tiptoeing closer. Hanging off the edge of the couch, Kei’s left hand was somehow still holding the book they had been reading. Tadashi gently eased the book from his husband’s grasp and placed it on the kotatsu table. He left Kei’s glasses on, just in case taking them off would wake him.

A thud followed by a muffled “ow” drew Tadashi’s attention back to the hallway and he hurried out towards the source of noise. He found Hiroaki leaning against the wall, his basket of folded laundry on the floor in front of him so he could hold his right foot off the floor with both hands. Kazumi was nearby with his basket in hand, looking torn between laughing and wincing which resulted in a very odd facial expression. If Tadashi were to wager a guess, his son had kicked the door frame on his way out of Tadashi and Kei’s room. He hissed in sympathy.

“Are you alright, Hiro-kun?”

“It hurts, Daddy.”

“I know. The pain should fade soon. Here, how about I carry your things to your room and you put them away once your foot feels better?”

Hiroaki nodded his approval and Tadashi scooped the basket up with ease before leading his sons to their room and setting it down. Hiroaki was already looking better, even though he was limping slightly and his smallest three toes were still blooming red. He gave both boys gentle pats on the head.

“I’m going to go clean the kitchen now. Make sure to keep it down, your Dad and Haruhi are taking a nap on the couch.” Tadashi smiled at his sons before leaving them to put their clean clothes away. He knew they’d heed his warning and keep the noise level to a minimum. They were good kids and knew just how cranky their Dad and little sister could be when they didn’t have enough sleep.

Tadashi was also quiet as he cleaned up the kitchen. Sweeping, sanitizing, and occasionally scrubbing every surface until the room glimmered. The whole time, Tadashi listened carefully for any unnecessary noise in the house. At one point he swore he heard whispers coming from the living room, but he decided it must’ve been his imagination when he heard nothing afterwards.

He finished wiping down the stove top and checked the time, surprised to find over an hour had passed since he started cleaning. Now a little past five, it was a good time to start dinner. Since Kei and Haruhi were still sleeping, as far as Tadashi knew, they would unfortunately not have a say in what dinner might be. But that still left the boys, so Tadashi finished putting the cleaning supplies away and walked out of the kitchen.

To his surprise, two more bodies had joined his husband’s and daughter’s on the couch. Kazumi was half sprawled across Kei’s stomach and down his left side, somehow not falling off the edge of the couch. Hiroaki was in a much safer position, having tucked himself between Kei’s legs with his head pillowed on his Dad’s thigh.

Without hesitation, Tadashi pulled out his phone and snapped another picture. Actually, he took several, gradually moving closer with every snapshot. He did his best to capture all four sleeping faces and the various positions his family was in. It was perfect evidence of just how sweet Tadashi’s husband was and how much Kei loved his kids. Tadashi giggled at the thought of the Kageyama’s reacting to Kei holding two of his children in his arms as he slept.

Unfortunately, that tiny sound was enough to wake said sleeping Kei.

Tadashi watched, frozen in fear as his husband blinked hard to clear his vision (since both hands were pinned down) before turning to look back at Tadashi. For a brief moment, Kei smiled softly up at his husband, eyelids a little drooped with leftover sleep. Then Kei spotted the phone in Tadashi’s hand, held in such a way that it was obvious what Tadashi had just been doing and the smile vanished.

“Tadashi, don’t you dare send that to-”

“Shouyou is going to  _ love _ this!”

“Don’t!”

Tadashi disappeared back into the kitchen as Kei struggled to escape the couch, all three children whining in complaint as their sleep became collateral damage. Without a moment to lose, Tadashi’s fingers flew across his phone screen and sent all twenty pictures to Akiteru, both his and Kei’s parents, Shouyou and Tobio, Yachi, and Kei's own phone. He pressed the ‘Send’ button right as Kei’s voice called out from the living room, “Children, attack your father!”

“Daddy!!”

Tadashi only had enough time to tuck his phone into his back pocket and spin around before his children were barreling through the doorway to attach themselves to his legs and waist. Despite knowing that he was only playing into Kei’s hands, Tadashi didn’t hesitate to bend down and scoop a yawning Haruhi into his arms, Kazumi climbing onto his back as he did so.

Kei walked into the kitchen just as Tadashi managed to straighten himself back up. Hiroaki was the last of their children still touching the ground, and with one heave of his big volleyball muscles (Tadashi’s words) Kei had the boy up on his hip. With his other hand, Kei wrapped his husband and other children into a large, slightly awkward hug. Haruhi giggled from her place between her father’s chests while her older brothers tried to reach around for a way to halfheartedly smack each other.

Tadashi grinned up at his husband’s face, prompting Kei to kiss him square on the lips. They part with laughter as their children chide in unison, “Eeeeww!”

Deciding they had embarrassed their children enough, the fathers set the three of them back on the ground and watched them leave the room to find something entertaining to do. Kei pulled Tadashi closer, kissing his forehead.

Tadashi hummed in content, resting his head against Kei’s chest. “Does this mean you forgive me for the pictures?”

“Only if you sent me them as well.”

“Already in your inbox.”

“I love you.”

Tadashi shifted so his chin was resting between Kei’s pecs, smiling sweetly up at the man he had built his past, present, and future with. “I love you, too.”


End file.
